Celebrating Design: 10th Annual Design Awards

I looove design. For those of you who know me personally or virtually, you know my passion for great design and that doesn’t insult the user (read: me and you). Growing up, my curiosity for mechanical parts to build and assemble art every form was the paradigm of my youth.

Inspired by the masters who brought science into my living room in the form of a cartoon, it’s no wonder I love living in the Jetson age. From intriguing interactive screens (Star Trek fast forward) to sexy cars to hand-held devices that allow me to connect with you at any time, the White House Millennium Council is celebrating design for the 10th consecutive year.

Celebrating Design
The Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum celebrates the 10th anniversary of the National Design Awards. Seeking to increase national awareness of design by educating the public and promoting excellence, innovation, and lasting achievement, the program was first launched at the White House in 2000 as an official project of the White House Millennium Council.

Every great advancement in the history of man has been because of design. The wheel, the bow and arrow, the pencil, architecture, space flight…you name it and it’s design that made it possible. If we fail to understand the importance of design we stop advancing and ultimately we lose. ~A.Hayden

Conceived by the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum to honor the best in American design, the National Design Awards program celebrates design in various disciplines as a vital humanistic tool in shaping the world. Solicited from a committee of more than 800 leading designers, educators, journalists, cultural figures, and corporate leaders from every state in the nation,the Awards are truly national in scope.

Tom’s Call-to-Action
At the end of Design Week, Friday, July 24, First Lady Michelle Obama, honorary patron for the awards program, will host a White House ceremony and luncheon for the winners and finalists of the 2009 awards.

Tom Dair, co-founder and president of Smart Design, (pioneers techniques for achieving better design through an understanding of user behavior, business factors, and technology trends) is again being honored as a finalist for a National Design Award. As Dair says, “There is a good chance I’ll get to meet the honorable–and outspoken supporter of design, certainly with regards to fashion–First Lady Michelle Obama. And there’s a good chance I’ll get to say “hello,” or “it’s an honor to meet you,” or “thank you” when she congratulates me for my firm’s recognition for this year’s award.”

Tom’s request:
If he gets the chance to tell Michelle Obama something about design that might get her to take more interest in how design can help to improve the world’s condition, what should he say to her? He’s not talking about an elevator pitch for design (too wordy); the perfect soundbite. Something impactful, prolific and powerful.

Andrew has added his (read the quote above). If you’ve got something powerful to include in how design can help to improve the world, move quickly!